Pieces
by ThoughtlessDream
Summary: Kagami weaved through the streets of L.A, everything around him drowned out by the deafening pounding of his own desperate footsteps. The gun felt heavy in his pocket, it's meaning seemed to drag him down, but the adrenaline drove him on despite the painful tightening in his chest. The name echoed over and over in his head as he ran down yet another street: 'Kuroko'. KagaKuro
1. Smile

**Pairing**: Main Kagami/Kuroko, side GoM/Kuroko and others

**Chapter rating**: K

**Disclaimer**: All Kuroko no Basuke characters belong to that awesome son of a beaver Tadatoshi Fujimaki, so I don't own anything but the plot.

**Arc I - A Single Light**

**Chapter One - Smile**

"K-kagami…"

The boy looked down at the one calling his name before running his fingers through the mass of shocking blue hair currently resting on his lap. Kagami leaned back against his bedroom wall, feeling the head in his lap bury itself farther into his stomach; the other boys face was completely hidden by the material of his shirt.

Kagami let out a sigh, letting his head fall back against the wall as well and closing his eyes. His fingers continued to gently move through the soft hair; the other boy was lying perpendicular to him on the floor, using his legs as a pillow. Kagami opened his eyes as he felt movement, and found baby blue eyes gazing back at him.

The other boy had sat up, legs on either side of his hips as he straddled him. Kagami could feel the other's grip on his shoulders tighten as the smaller boy leaned his face in closer, before whispering softly.

"Kagami-kun," his breath fan across the others face before pulling back, a slight smirk sliding into place before continuing, "Taiga…."

Kagami felt his hand moving on it's own, reaching up to pull the other closer, mouth opening to call out his name.

"Kuro-" eyes snapped open as the boy sat up straight in bed, "-ko…" the rest of the name falling from his lips.

Kagami looked around in a daze. What the hell was that? Different thoughts flew around his head at once, and he could feel a headache coming on already. One question struck him in particular; did he just have a dream about his teammate? The basketball player let out a groan before falling back into his sheets. It was too early for this.

He lay there unmoving hoping for the pain in his head to just pass, but couldn't help but miss the comfortable feeling of the head in his lap. Another groan left his lips as Kagami pressed the heels of his hands into his closed eyes. He really hoped nothing was going to come of this.

**~KuroBasu~**

The headache didn't go away. In fact by the time lunch rolled around Kagami felt far worse then he did that morning. He fell forward into his desk and closed his eyes; it seemed like every time he tried to look at the board everything would just start spinning. Not that Kagami was a model student to begin with but it's never been this bad.

"Kagami-kun"

The taller male didn't even bother being surprised as his teammate suddenly appeared in front of him. Instead he opt to just looking up, and grunting a response.

"Kagami-kun are you feeling ok? You seem like you're failing more in class than normal." Kuroko's expression didn't really look too concerned, but his head was tilted slightly as he asked the question. Kagami frowned, that sounded more like an insult than being worried.

"I'm feeling fine, why're you asking?"

"It's just that lunch started 10 mins ago and you haven't started eating. Plus you don't have your normal huge pile of food," he looked around as if searching for said pile of food.

Kagami blinked before realizing that he was right. Normally at this point in the day he would be famished and probably half way through his 5th sandwich. With this realization he pulled out his bag and dumped it's contents onto his desk, picking up a random sandwich and started eating.

"What do you want?" Kagami raised and eyebrow questioningly as his teammate just stood there staring at his bag. The smaller boy looked up to meet the other's eyes.

"I was just thinking that food really is all Kagami-kun brings to school."

"Shut-up!"

Looking away Kagami didn't notice the blank gaze that lingered slightly before turning away as well. Kuroko returned to his own desk to eat his own lunch, quietly observing the one in front of him.

The rest of class seemed to drag on forever, and Kagami breathed a sigh of relief when they finally ended. Wasting no time at all he headed straight to the gym with Kuroko on his heals, ready to work off the day's weariness. Practice progressed normally; they did a few drills, ran a few laps and played a practice game at the end. It was in that very game that Kagami ran off court to puke his day's meals into a poor unsuspecting trashcan.

The rest of the team stopped playing and came over to see if he was ok.

"Kagami you don't look too good why don't you go home for the day." Aida glanced over with a worried expression before writing something down on her clipboard. "Eat a proper meal and get plenty of rest."

Kagami didn't bother arguing for once and just quickly made his way back to the change room, to pack his stuff and leave. He did feel like crap, every step seemed to only make his head pound harder against his skull as his vision swam a little. A nice long nap did sound good right now, and with that thought as motivation he made his way home.

**~KuroBasu~**

Kuroko was already at the school gates when someone shouted his name. He stopped walking and looked back as Hyuga caught up with him and tossed him a gym bag.

"Kagami forgot it in the change room, do you think you could give it to him? You know where he lives right?"

Kuroko nodded in response.

"Oh and the coach says that he probably shouldn't come to school tomorrow, tell him to stay home and rest until he's fully recovered."

Kuroko nodded again before replying, "I'll let him know," and with that he turned away from the team captain and continued walking. It just so happens that Kuroko did know where Kagami lived, he had gone over once before to work on a school project together. From what he remembered it wasn't far from the school, but in the opposite direction of his house. Letting out a sigh he decided he might as well drop the stuff off first then head home.

The apartment itself was a fairly new looking building, with smooth brick and shinny windows. It was 5 stories tall and Kagami lived at the very top. Kuroko let out another sigh and began the climb, by the time he found the right door his arms were tired from holding the weight of the extra bag. Just what was in there anyways?

Setting the bag down to relieve his arms, Kuroko rang the doorbell and waited. He stood there for about 3 mins before trying again. After a few tries he decided to just walk in and drop the stuff off, maybe he was asleep. The door was unlocked so Kuroko entered with out a hassle, setting his shoes neatly by the door and looking around.

The apartment was about medium sized, with a living room, kitchen, bathroom and 1 bedroom. Kuroko spotted Kagami sprawled out on the couch of his living room, and upon closer inspection realized that he wasn't asleep at all. The other was just gazing tiredly at the T.V not really seeing what was on the screen. Kuroko walked farther into the room, but didn't seem to catch the others attention until he actually moved in front of the T.V.

Kagami let of a startled cry bolting up straight on the seat.

"K-kuroko! What the hell are you doing here? Also when and how did you get in?"

Kuroko just looked back with the same blank expression, and for a few seconds Kagami thought he was going to reply with his normal 'I've been here the whole time'.

"The door was unlocked and I walked in just now. You forgot your bag at school and Hyuga-kun asked me to return it to you. He held up the bag to prove what he said.

Kagami sank back into the couch and relaxed, to be honest he hadn't even notice that his bag was missing, it's not like he did his homework anyways. Tiredness was overtaking him again and he fought the urge to close his eyes.

The couch dipped as another weight was added. He was startled again at the sudden presence of a cool hand on his forehead. Kagami observed the other as he pulled back his hand; right knee still on the couch.

"Kagami-kun you seem to have a fever." Kuroko spoke quietly, and Kagami watched in awe as a worried frown replaced the normally blank look. "Have you eaten yet?"

It took Kagami a few moments to tear his eyes away from the slightly downturned lips and focus on what the other was saying, managing a shake of his head. The other stood back up and made his way toward the kitchen without saying anything else, but Kagami got the idea. Settling back down into the couch he let the soft sounds of dishes clanking to lull him to sleep.

**~KuroBasu~**

Kuroko wasn't by any means good at cooking. When his parents weren't home he got by off canned foods, boiled eggs and packages that had preparation instructions on the back. So looking around Kagami's kitchen he found a box of soup mix and set to work. It was his first time being in the kitchen actually and Kuroko had a pretty hard time finding the things he needed. After the pot of water was finally boiling Kuroko added the soup mix and stirred it a few times, before putting the heat on low and going to check on Kagami.

The other was fast asleep on the couch still in his basketball clothes, sprawled out and half falling off. Kuroko mentally sighed, looking around the room for something to use as a blanket for the other; his eyes landed on the jacket he had brought with him.

"Kagami-kun really is and idiot, you can't get better sleeping like this." Kuroko scolded his sleeping teammate while laying the jacket over him.

It was already dark outside, and Kuroko wasn't surprised to see that the clock read 9:47pm. Digging through his pockets he pulled out his cellphone (yes he has one), leaving a quick message for his parents informing them of the situation. His parents always told him to never be outside alone after dark, so he figured they wouldn't disapprove of him staying over.

Seeing that Kagami was still fast asleep with no signs of waking up Kuroko decided to eat some of his own meal and do his homework. The room was quite as he worked.

**~KuroBasu~**

At some point Kagami had woken up. It took a few mins for what he was seeing to connect with what had happened. Kuroko was sitting at the kitchen table, his back to Kagami, pencil scribing away on what was probably homework. The other must have decided to stay the night seeing as it was already approaching 11:00pm. Warmth spread through his chest at the thought and he couldn't help but smile a bit.

"Oi, Kuroko how long do you intend to stay up? It's not good for your health you know."

If the other was surprised he didn't show it, turning around and calmly meeting Kagami's eyes.

"Kagami-kun I hope you don't mind, I decided to stay the night since it was already so late."

"It's fine, I don't mind." Kagami made to stand up but instantly felt dizzy and fell back into the couch. His head still hurt, and everything ached when he tried to move. Kuroko's hand was on his forehead again, but this time Kagami's head induced mind couldn't help but noticing those pale pink lips as the other leaned over. He couldn't help but imagine pressing his own lips against them and soaking up that cool warmth radiated from the smaller teen.

"I think the fever got worse Kagami-kun, do you have any medicine you could take?" Kuroko stood back up with an expectant look on his face, blissfully oblivious to his teammate's thoughts.

"No, this is the first time I've gotten sick since coming back to Japan and I just never felt the need to stock up on any." Kagami managed to snap out of his thoughts and answer the question.

"Ok then, I'll go out and buy some tomorrow so you'll just have to wait till then. For now please eat something Kagami-kun, I'll warm the soup back up, please don't fall asleep again." His voice had a slightly teasing tone to it, and Kagami smirked.

"Yah yah, just hurry up."

By the time Kagami finally put his spoon down to signal he was done, it was nearing midnight and both males were having a hard time keeping their eyes open. (Note: I doubt teens these days have a problem staying up this late but whatever). Kuroko suppressed a yawn with his hand before opening his mouth to talk, but Kagami cut him off before he began.

"We'll both be sleeping in my room." He'd been thinking about it the whole time while eating, coming up with different ways of saying it but in the end decided to just go with the direct method. But seeing the other's blank look at his words he quickly tried to explain the situation. "You see I don't have any extra blankets or pillows… so I couldn't let you sleep on the couch and…" he trailed off awkwardly waiting for the other's reaction.

Kuroko for his part didn't really give much of a reaction, simply nodding before following the other to his room. With his back to him Kagami never noticed the way Kuroko shifted his gaze to the ground; or the light blush that had formed on those pale cheeks.

Getting settled into bed was extremely awkward as expected. Kagami owned a single twin sized bed like all normal kids his age, the piece of furniture was in the in the right corner of the room using the wall as the backrest. But in the end after some shuffling around and curses on Kagami's part the pair finally found something that worked, and silence enveloped the room.

Kuroko lay facing the wall, having changed into some of Kagami's pajamas and was now dozing off into a peaceful slumber. Kagami however couldn't find it in himself to close his eyes. Every time he did another reminder of just how awkward this whole situation was flashed into his vision. Kuroko's back brushed against his with each inhale and exhale and if he listened he could hear the other's gentle breathing.

Kagami resisted the urge to turn around and pull the other's smaller form against his. As much as he wanted to just press that cool skin against his heated body to relive the burning, logic spoke to him for once and Kagami took its advice and didn't move.

**~KuroBasu~**

They woke up extremely close together. Kagami was the first to open his eyes, only to find his vision obstructed by a mass of blue hair. It was comfortably warm and his mind briefly registered that he didn't feel sick anymore, before sinking back into the dream like daze. Kagami tightened his hold on the smaller body pressed against him as it shifted slightly; Kuroko tilted his head upwards to avoid suffocation. Dazed red eyes met sleepy blue ones, as Kagami continued to cuddle Kuroko.

It took a few moments for the sleep-induced state to wear off.

Kagami froze; laying paralyzed eyes still locked with Kuroko's now slightly widened ones, one arm thrown hazardously over the other's waist pulling them closer. The seconds ticked by and neither made any attempt to move apart. The initial shock wore off slightly and Kagami felt the tension slowly start to fade. They fell into a comfortable silence, and simply basked in the other's presence.

Kuroko's breath brushed against his neck and Kagami's free hand moved up to thread itself into the blue hair. It was soft, just like it was in his dream, just like he'd always thought. And Kagami wondered when he had actually made that observation, but didn't ponder on it as he gently pet the others head.

The seconds ticked by and Kagami had almost drifted off to sleep again. Kuroko was the one to break the silence.

"Kagami-kun school's going to start soon, coach said for you to stay home today but I should get going soon." He turned over and pushed himself up as far as he could with the heavy arm still slung across his waist. Watching amused as the other boy finally caught on and jerked back embarrassed, falling off the bed in the process.

Smiling slightly to himself Kuroko leaned over to check if the other was ok, before getting off the bed and heading for the bathroom to get ready for the morning. He was still tried, even though on a normal day he would have been up long before this. Checking the time again Kuroko decided that there wouldn't be enough time to shower, and just opted to taming his wild bed hair by brushing.

Kagami hadn't gotten off the floor yet; instead he just sat there, deep in his newest train of troubling thoughts. Has Kuroko always looked like that? Has he always had such a slim form that would cause Kagami's shirt to hang so loosely off him? The Seirin power forward was sure that he shouldn't have been so fascinated by that pale porcelain skin reveled when the shirt slide a little too much off his shoulders. Kagami's mind flashed to the way Kuroko's lips had been slightly upturned when he had looked over the side of the bed.

He's never noticed any of these things before, so why was he seeing them now? Maybe this was another symptom of his sickness? Kagami shook his head before finally getting up off the floor.

Even with these hesitations, Kagami couldn't help but wish Kuroko would smile like that more often.

I'd love to hear people's opinion of this story. It's gonna start out light but later on will have some more serious plot, and content that matches the story's rating...

Please Review ^^


	2. Impulse

**Disclaimer - I don't own any Kuroko no Basuke Characters****  
**

**Arc I – A Single Light **

**Chapter Two – Impulse **

Practice had run later than usual; it was already dark out and Kuroko's footsteps echoed in the empty streets as he walked towards his house. There were a few things that he needed to grab before going over to Kagami's house. Kuroko dug around in his bag as he rounded a corner, his parents said that they wouldn't be back for another two days from their business trip. It was a commonly occurring event; his parents would leave for a few days to complete work in different cities or another country altogether. The house itself was a medium sized building with tall windows and a black door. Kuroko paused at the gate his hand on the lock.

The kitchen light was on.

**~KuroBasu~**

There was an air bubble in the top left corner of his bedroom window, two inches down from the top frame and about 5 cm in length. Kagami had never noticed this fact before, but after having stared at it for the past 3 hours the image was imprinted into the back of his eye lids.

It was already 8:00pm; Kuroko was late. Kagami was well aware that practice had probably just run longer than usual, and plus Kuroko had said he need to grab something from home before coming over again. However spending an entire day sitting at home with nothing to do left Kagami restless.

Kagami sat up from his bed in one fluid movement, before making his way to the door of his apartment room. He stopped at the door and stared down at his shoes seated neatly at the entrance where he'd left them the last two times he 'resolved' to go out. It was quite possible that Kuroko would arrive when he was out and he didn't even have any clue where to start looking for the smaller teen.

His hand tightened around the doorknob nonetheless and Kagami quickly slipped into his shoes. There was no way he could survive any longer sitting inside. He'd been feeling more restless than normal; it was an intense pressure in his chest that made his heart beat faster every time he tried to focus. Ever since Kuroko had left that morning there's been something at the very back of his mind trying to get his attention; wanting to be addressed.

With the weight on his chest just getting worse the more he stood there Kagami threw open the door and took a step outside. He was getting hungry anyways so he'd get something to eat while he was out. The second step outside didn't work out as well as the first did.

Looking down Kagami realized there was already a foot where he was trying to place his, and a body in the space he was currently invading.

A flash of light teal hair and calm aqua blue eyes staring back at him.

Kagami wondered two things in the brief seconds of their decent.

Would he ever be able to properly see Kuroko?

Did Kuroko always look so calm? _Even when he was falling?_

The impact didn't hurt as much as he thought it would, maybe that was because the boy under him cushioned part of it, or maybe it was because Kagami had caught himself on the railing so as to not completely crush said boy.

"Kagami-kun, you're heavy, please get off"

Obviously he didn't do too good of a job.

"Damn, where the hell did you come from Kuroko!" He looked down on the boy he was hovering over before slowly getting up.

"I've been standing in front of the door for a while now, then you just suddenly started walking out." Kuroko rubbed at his lower back where it had impacted with the ground before picking himself up as well.

Kagami frowned, furrowing his eyebrows.

"Idiot why didn't you knock?"

"I did but you didn't answer and I was about to just walk in again but…" he trailed off as Kagami let out a sigh.

"Next time don't bother knocking, just let yourself in I don't live with anyone so it doesn't matter." Kagami led the way back into his apartment room expecting Kuroko to have followed. But the other was still crouched outside the door.

"What are you doing?" Kagami peaked around the doorframe and was startled to realize for the first time that there were bags scattered over the floor.

Kuroko looked up, from grabbing the last bag.

_Why hadn't he noticed? _

"Just getting my stuff, I've brought a change of clothes this time and also my parents returned home early, so they've prepared food for us."

"A-ah…." Kagami stuttered as he watched Kuroko finally walk into the room, heading over to the small dining table and setting down three of the four bags.

"My mother made bentos for us, I informed her of your eating habits so she prepared a lot."

It was true. Kagami counted about 12 boxes of bentos in total and considering Kuroko probably couldn't even finish one, that meant a lot for himself. His stomach seemed to growl in agreement, and reminded him of how hungry he was. Kuroko shot him an amused glance while setting the table before claiming a chair and looking at him expectantly.

Kagami wasn't sure if he was still upset that Kuroko was late or not. The weight that's been dragging at him all day was gone and Kagami couldn't help but smiling at the light feeling that had replaced it.

"Kagami-kun?"

Kuroko's voice snapped him out of his daze; that seemed to be happening a lot lately.

"Kagami-kun is smiling for no reason again." Kuroko crooked his head at the taller male as he sat down at the table.

"W-what! No I wasn't!" He didn't know why he felt so happy, but the other boy's gaze made his cheeks heat up a little and Kagami quickly grabbed some food and dug in with vigor. There was a moment of silence as Kagami stuffed food into his mouth and Kuroko's eyes lingered on the red head, who was trying to concentrate on eating.

"Kagami-kun is an idiot," it was almost a whisper. Kuroko finally turned his attention back to his own meal; picking away at it in his slow, careful way.

His head was still lowered, but out of the corner of his eye Kagami still caught a glimpse of the small smile on his friend's face. He felt the corners his own lips being pulled upwards, compelled by some unknown force. It was an impulse.

And Kagami didn't fight it.

**~KuroBasu~**

After they ate Kuroko started on his homework while Kagami cleaned up the leftovers. There was a comfortable silence as the two went about their work, and the next hour passed by similarly. Having finished his chore Kagami was lounging on the couch when Kuroko snapped his books shut. There was an added force in the action and Kagami looked up amused to watch his frustrated partner shove everything into a bag, he caught a glance of a functions textbook.

"Not gonna finish?" Kagami stood up from the couch, stretched out all his limbs before closing in on the table. There was a teasing tone in his voice and Kuroko shot back a playful glare.

"I forgot to mention earlier Kagami-kun, but we are having tests tomorrow in all our classes." Kuroko's face was his normal deadpan and it was hard to tell whether he was kidding or not.

When Kuroko's face didn't show any change after a few minutes of laughing on his part, Kagami panicked.

"You were being serious?"

The slight nod said it all.

"You seem to be doing a lot better today Kagami-kun, how do you feel?" Kuroko reached up immediately after asking and pressed his palm against the taller male's forehead.

Kagami didn't really know what to say, either too distracted by the sight of Kuroko standing on his tippy toes to reach him or just taking time to process the tests that he might have to take depending on his answer.

"You don't feel warm anymore," there was a hint of something in Kuroko's voice that made the decision for Kagami.

"N-no, not yet… maybe just one more day to rest up," there was a slight pause as Kagami thought about his next words. "Could, you come over after school tomorrow and help me study?"

Kuroko looked faintly surprised, but gave a faint nod before heading to bed. "I'm tired, let's go to sleep."

**~KuroBasu~**

When red eyes blinked open only to be greeted by a dark room, Kagami knew right away it was way too early to be awake. The room was silent save for the occasional inhale and exhale. Kagami shut his eyes again willing sleep to come but found his mind wide awake and alert. It was only 4:10am and Kuroko was still passed out beside him. Their legs had somehow gotten tangled again in the night, and Kuroko's head was currently occupying his arm. All this made the task of getting up much harder than it had to be.

Moving slowly and gently so as not to disturb the other, Kagami quietly slipped out of the room and made his way into the kitchen. He sat down at the table and let out the breath he'd been holding. Kagami leaned back and stared up at the ceiling, normally he'd still be sound asleep at this time. But, having done nothing but lying around in bed all day left his body full of unused energy.

Thinking back Kagami wasn't sure how he even managed to fall sleep in the first place. At some point last night Kuroko's soft breathing had lulled him so sleep.

School wasn't until 8:00am and he wasn't even going, so there was no rush. Kagami decided he'd go for a jog to work off some energy, and then make breakfast before Kuroko got up.

The air outside was cold, every breath turned into a white puff of smoke before thinning out like fog. Kagami paused at the base of his apartment building to stretch out his legs before finally heading off.

The first rays of light were peaking over the horizon as Kagami rounded the corner and turned back onto his street. He had taken longer than he's originally planned; it was already 6:30am by the time his apartment came into view. Looking up at his window he hoped that Kuroko wasn't awake yet.

Just as he turned away there was a flash of blue in the corner of his eye. Kagami did a double take but when he looked again the window was unoccupied. Was it just his imagination? He really hoped that he wasn't just losing it; lately it seemed that all his thoughts somehow lead back to his blue haired teammate.

He was in an impulsive spiral downward.

The room was quiet as Kagami set his shoes to the side and hung up his coat. His feet took him towards the bedroom. He poked his head into the room and let out a light chuckle.

It seemed that Kuroko had put the whole bed to good use; he was spread out on his stomach, shirt riding up to expose the pale skin on his back.

"And he calls me an idiot" Kagami leaned over to pull the shirt back down. His fingers brushed across the skin, perhaps lingering a bit longer than necessary. He found it hard to pull away, instead simply opting to stand there in silence.

The early signs of bed hair were already beginning to show. Kagami resisted the urge to ruffle it, smiling he finally turned around and walked out of the room.

Blue eyes followed his retreating back.

**~KuroBasu~**

It was another restless day Kagami spent wasting away in his room, reading and rereading the multitude of basketball magazines he had collected over the years. But even that got boring after a while, he wondered how Kuroko was doing on the tests they apparently had today, it didn't weigh too heavily on his conscience; not nearly as much as it should of. It was all the basketball practices that concerned him.

He hadn't even touched a basketball in two days. The thought of making a short detour to the court that morning had been tempting, but he knew he'd have lost track of time even more that way. Maybe after Kuroko got back they could practice together. It was Friday and Kagami wondered if Kuroko had somewhere to be tonight; did his family want him home. It sounded like his parents weren't there a lot so they probably wanted to use chance time to spend time together.

Kagami looked over at the clock again for what seemed like the hundredth time that day. It was nearing 6:00pm, unless it was running over time again practice should be just about over. He sat up to glance out the window and was surprised to see said boy making his way toward the building.

Suddenly filled with new inspiration Kagami bolted up, grabbed a bag off his bed and quickly made his way to the door, slipping into his shoes on the way out.

He intercepted Kuroko before he got to the building and pulled him back the way he came.

"Kagami-kun, where are we going?" Kuroko's voice didn't really hold any objections, but was slightly out of breath from their fast pace. Kagami slowed down to a walk and let go of his arm.

"Let's go to the court, I'm itching to play."

It was all the explanation needed cause Kuroko didn't question him or even the fact that he was still lugging around all his school stuff.

They played for the better part of two hours before Kuroko finally collapsed from exhaustion. The sun was already going down as Kagami slammed the ball into the basket one last time before joining his teammate on the ground.

"I feel alive again!"

The redhead sprawled out on the cement letting out a content breath. Sweat dripped from his head and soaked through the thin material of his shirt. He turned over to the other about to suggest the go to Maji to grab a bite to eat but his stomach beat him to it, letting out a long distressed growl voicing its pain.

Kuroko lifted an arm away from his face and shot the bigger teen an amused look. He sat up grabbing the discarded sweater beside him and threw it on.

"Shall we go to Maji?"

Kagami smirked, getting up as well.

"You read my mind."

Once inside Maji Kagami bought his normal towering stack of burgers and Kuroko already holding the vanilla milkshake lead the way to their designated table.

"Is that all you're eating, this is dinner you know." Kagami raised an eyebrow at the other before setting a burger in front of him.

Kuroko blinked back at him confused for a moment, "I was planning to eat after getting home."

Kagami's thoughts froze in place. That's right Kuroko was going home after this, he's know this all along but it seems to have slipped his mind somewhere in the last hour. This realization hit him a bit harder than it should have.

"But I'll take your offer, thank you Kagami-kun," nimble fingers unwrapped the burger before taking a bite.

The rest of the meal went by uneventfully.

Kuroko seemed to notice his friends suddenly gloomy mood, but didn't' comment on it. The other had offered to walk him home since it was already dark out; both their footsteps echoed in the empty street as they neared his house. It took another 10 minutes before the structure came into view.

A sudden desperation shook Kagami's frame, his hand shot out, and before he realized what was happening had grabbed the other's wrist, effectively stopping Kuroko from opening his front gate.

That mounting pressure was back, pushing down on his chest and making it just a bit hard to breath.

It almost hurt.

"Can… you stay over again?" There was desperation in his voice.

He just wanted the pressure to go away.

Kuroko blinked at him for the second time that day. He didn't say anything but the small nod brought air back into Kagami's lungs.

This time Kagami didn't miss the light tint of pink dusted across those pale cheeks. It brought blood flooding to this own face. He wasn't sure why, such a simple gesture had such an impact on him, but the light feeling in his limbs was a welcomed change to the dead weight.

When had that anxiety disappeared?

Kagami looked back down to his teammate, he hadn't let go of the other's wrist yet.

Clear blue eyes met his crimson gaze.

Ah, he remembered now, it was every time he saw Kuroko that the pressure disappeared.

There was something pushing at the edge of his conscience, something waiting to be acknowledged. Or maybe he was already aware of it. He needed to tell Kuroko, make the other aware so that this pounding in his chest might stop. So that he could understand why his body was moving so suddenly on its own. But his thoughts were frozen in place, voice caught in his throat.

Kagami didn't realize he'd let go, allowed the impulse to take over. It pounded through his veins, numbing his mind. It directed his movement until everything disappeared.

And all he could feel were the velvety soft lips against his own.

AN: hahah I'm sorry this took so long it was my intention to get it up by the end of each month but school kind of can a long and killed that plan. I'll try this time, but I I got things a bit more organized, so notice that there's arcs now, not that you probably care... anyways

Please review and tell me anything you want to see happen. This first arc I'm taking and request on some filler fun chapters (mainly Kagami and Kuroko, I have plans for how the other GOM come in) they can be any rating and I'll try my best! ^^ but I mean be reasonable Kagami and Kuroko can't just randomly explode...


	3. Expression

**Chapter Three – Expression**

It was windy, cold autumn air lashed at his face but didn't cool the heat there in the slightest. Kagami found it hard to think with his heart pounding in his ears and the intoxicatingly sweet smell of vanilla clouding his every thought.

He almost expected the shorter boy to shove him away or 'ignite pass' him in the stomach. But Kuroko didn't move except a slight tensing of his shoulders. His lips quivered against Kagami's. From the cold perhaps, the redhead didn't ponder, as he pressed closer; breathing in more of that intoxicating scent. Feeling daring he flicked out his tongue and slowly dragged it along Kuroko's bottom lip reveling in the soft texture against his taste buds.

The other's gasp broke him from his trance, Kuroko pulled away to draw oxygen back into his system; Kagami noticed the burning in his own lungs. After they had both caught their breaths, Kagami felt that he should say something. He noticed that Kuroko was staring up at him, directly into his eyes, as if he was excepting Kagami to act first.

"So-" Kagami started rubbing the back of his flaming red hair. His mind froze; he didn't know what to say. It was like he was in the middle of a math test blanking on the most important question. He was about to about his mouth to try once more when he felt something warm against his leg.

He looked down and saw a small set of eyes looking back up at him; they were exactly like Kuroko's. Kagami shrieking embarrassingly and jumped back to avoid the fluffy terror.

"Kuroko…get that thing away from me!" Kagami screeched as he backed away from the dog. The dog simply matched Kagami's backward steps and remained by the tall boy's side.

"He's not going to hurt you." Kuroko assured. But before Kuroko could come to Kagami's aid he was already running down the street, leaving Kuroko utterly alone.

**~KuroBasu~**

Kagami felt like he was drifting around the court rather than actually moving his body. It's been 4 and a half days since that little encounter outside of Kuroko's house, 4 and a half days should have been more than enough time for Kagami to get his shit together and settle things between them. Yet that distance between them never disappeared, it was like watching the shorter boy now, running a few meters in front of him on the court just out of arms reach.

It wasn't quite as awkward as he'd first assumed things would be when he meet up with Kuroko at basketball practice the following Monday. Kuroko seemed set on letting Kagami be the one to bring it up again, which made sense considering that Kagami was the one to act in the first place. But thinking up ways to start the conversation wasn't going so well, and it definitely didn't help his schoolwork in anyway.

There would be entire classes that seemed to go by in mere moments, and before he realized the bell would be ringing. And Kuroko would be there with his blank expression and amused glint in his eyes, as he handed him the day's notes.

The day would then proceed like any other and soon they'd be in basketball practice. Kagami found it extremely hard to actually play a game and zone out at the same time. This fact was made even harder when your, already hard to keep track of, shadow had a tendency to use misdirection in games. There was barely any time from when you see the high-speed basketball flying at you to when that high-speed basketball impacts with your face. Over the short course of a few days this particular event has occurred about 5 times and – SMACK

Kagami was starting at the ceiling, a painful ache in his jaw. 5 times has just been upped to 6.

"Kagami-kun, are you ok" Kuroko's monotone voice cut into the red head's thoughts.

"I think you dislocated my freakin' jaw, would it be too much to ask that you don't hurl the ball at me when I'm not paying attention." Kagami whined half heartedly for what it was worth as he sat up off the floor.

Kuroko opened his mouth, about to reply but was cut off they their coach who had walked over with a disapproving look on her face.

"Then he might as well not be passing to you at all, Kagami you're doing about as much good out there as you are on the benches." Aida scowled down at Kagami. "Just what's gotten into you lately, your mind's obviously not here with us."

Kagami glanced over towards Kuroko who had rejoined the game. "Guess my minds just on other things right now" he scratched his head.

"You're thinking?" the coach looked genuinely surprised, "well just don't hurt yourself, we still need you for our next game. But that's only if you're not going to be a zombie, you better get your shit together cause we have a practice match first thing next week."

Kagami sighed not even bothering to be offended by the obvious jab at his intelligence. She was completely right though. Not about him thinking, but about needing to get it together. He couldn't let this drag on any longer.

Mind made up Kagami also rejoined the game trying to focus on the ball and not that head of soft blue hair.

Nothing came as more of a relief than that last whistle, signaling the end of practice. Kagami quickly made his way over to the changing room.

**~KuroBasu~**

Blue eyes blinked open to a dark room. Kuroko sat up slowly, rubbing sleep from his eyes it was 4:30 on a Saturday morning and he didn't know what had woken him up. It was a strange feeling in the pit of this stomach, like there was something he was forgetting, something about this day that meant something to him.

Stepping out of bed Kuroko shivered as his feed made contact with the cold floor. He looked around the room and spotted his slippers by the door before making his way over and slipping into them. Outside, the sun had yet to reach the horizon, Kuroko sighed, the days were getting shorter; soon he would be walking to school in the dark for morning practices.

His train of though was broken as a yawn escaped his lips. It was too early to be awake. But there would be no use thing to go back to sleep at this point, he was never the type of person to fall back asleep after waking up. Quietly he opened the door and stepped outside. There was a light from the bottom of the stairs, glancing over he confirmed that his parents door had been left ajar. Revealing the empty room. His parents had arrived home several days prior, and surprisingly had yet to take off again.

Making his way down the stairs Kuroko caught brief snippets of conversation before stepping into the kitchen.

There were papers scattered across the dinning table. His parents looked up from their discussion as they noticed his presence. Kuroko mentally shook his head. Sometimes he wondered if his parents were workaholics. This was apparently their time off yet it seemed more like they had simply brought the work home. But they did mention something about a meeting that night.

"Tetsuya, you're up early today." His dad beamed brightly, flashing a grin in his direction. Kuroko wondered how anyone could be so energetic at this time. It really was beyond him how either of his parents suffered from lack of sleep, considering both their busy schedules.

"I couldn't sleep," Kuroko gave his normal blank expression before going to the cupboards to grab a cup. He hadn't realized he was thirsty before entering the kitchen.

Gazing into the fridge's contents he reached out towards the mild but was startled by the hand that suddenly appeared on his forehead.

"You're not getting sick are you dear? How do you feel?" His mom had a frown on her face as she checked his temperature; Kuroko briefly wondered if this was how others felt about his sudden appearances. Opening his mouth to reassure the other that he was fine, the opportunity was denied as his mom kept talking.

"You don't feel warm, well at least you don't have a fever. Oh but it's getting colder now, maybe I should turn the heat up. Tetsuya go put on a sweater." Kuroko couldn't help but smile at his mother's personality. He felt like she was concerned about the most random things, and judging by the grin on his father's face, he probably thought the same thing.

Nevertheless, Kuroko heeded the command and left to retrieve a sweater.

"Since we're all up I'm starting breakfast, Tetsuya dear please do something about that hair while you're up there!"

It was nice to have them home. Both his parents held pretty dysfunctional jobs. His father was involved in police work, traveling to different sites all over the place reporting and documenting major events. This seemed to tie in well with his mother's job as an author for various newspapers. She followed him to most of his jobs and wrote on the transactions. The two rarely traveled alone.

For as long as he could remember he'd always been able to take care of himself, always so independent….

Kuroko leaned his forehead against his door, letting his eyes shut briefly. A memory stirred in the back of his mind, but he quickly shut it down.

The days when his parents did return home were always nice. Their lively voices filtered up the stairs and filled up the house. Kuroko pushed ways from the door and snatched a sweater from the closet. Running a brush through his hair a few times. Kuroko made his ways back down stairs, with a lingering glance out the window. Light was peaking over the horizon in a magnificent sunrise. Bathing the world in flaming red.

True to her word, his mom had turned up the heat, and now the house was a cozy temperature. Kuroko sat on the couch with his knees drawn close to his chest, stomach contently full, a book in his hands. Blue eyes flittered restlessly through the pages, jumping from word to word. His mind wasn't on the story being told, his body was itching to move but at the same time he was too comfortable to get up. Oh the hardships of life….

"Making progress with that book?"

His mom leaned against the railing dividing the living room from the dinning room. She glanced out the window before checking the time

Kuroko shut the book with as sigh, which seemed to be answer enough for this mom.

"Well then I was thinking of cleaning out that spare bedroom upstairs, we might be having a guest over in the foreseeable future. An old colleague of your fathers."

Kuroko gave a questioning look, but followed her upstairs all the same. He knew she was asking him for help in order to give him something to do, but they would probably end up calling a packing company in the end.

And looking into the apparent 'guest bedroom' Kuroko decided that they would definitely be calling someone to get all this in storage. Boxes upon boxes filled the room; there was hardly space to walk more than a few feet into the room itself. His mom wanted to clean this?

"Um… you know honey could you just grab the phone for me, think we're just going to call a moving company."

Kuroko shot his mother an understanding look, and a small smile.

There was a phone on the small table by the top of the stairs. Kuroko already had his hand around the device, but the person standing at the bottom of the stairs kept him frozen in place.

"Kagami-kun"

The red head was dressed in a light jacket, black with orange lining the sleeves and zipper. Kuroko almost laughed, did the other realize he had colour coded himself according to his name? Temporarily forgetting about the phone, the shorter boy leaved over the railing, waiting for some sort of explanation to occur.

It took a bit longer that it should have for Kagami to snap out of his daze. And when he did it was a wonder he didn't pass out from all the blood rushing to his head.

"K-kuroko, I was just… um"

"How did you get in?"

Knocking really didn't seem to work for them.

"Your dad let me in…" he trailed off, adverting his gaze in an attempt to hide the blush, flaming red, the colour of his hair.

"So are you… busy today?"

The question was directed at a painting hanging to Kuroko's right. Kagami shuffled his feet nervously a few more times before taking a deep breath in order to gather up the courage need to lock his gaze with Kuroko's. His whole demeanor might have looked shaky and unsecure, but there was nothing unsure about his gaze. It was unwavering and burning with fierce determination, someone without a doubt in his mind.

"Nope! He's been moping around all morning now. Please do us all a favor and get him out of this house." Kuroko turned around, his mom was approaching with a box in her hands. Giving her son a look that said 'back off' when he reached forward in an attempt to take the load off her arms.

Kagami had his mouth open, stammering out a brief greeting. Kuroko felt that perhaps he should say something, but no words came to mind so he just opts to watching as the scene unfolded before him. His mother turned her calculating eyes on her son's supposed 'friend'.

There was silence.

Obviously intimidated, Kagami quickly tried to make conversation. "Sorry to bother you so early in the morning, but I was wondering if…."

Kuroko almost banged his head into the nearest wall. It was nearing mid day, evidently by the sun hanging high in the sky. The red head seemed to also realize his mistake and rushed to cover it up.

"What I mean is I know it's almost lunch so you're probably making lunch, and it's really nice to meet you Mrs.…" The sentence made no logical sense, and the words 'Mrs. Kuroko' just felt awkward on his tongue.

The woman in question raised an eyebrow looking Kagami over once more before sudden realization widened her eyes, "you're American!"

The exclamation was followed by a beaming smile.

Satisfied by the tell tale silence, she turned and gave Kuroko a light push towards his room. "Come on now go get changed, how long are you gona keep your friend standing there?"

Kuroko nodded slightly, catching his friend's bewildered gaze firefly before leaving the scene for the safety of his room.

Watching his 'shadow' disappear down the hall. Kagami was startled when a box landed heavily directed in front of him, Kuroko's mom standing beside it. Kagami eyed the stairs. When the crap….

"It's nice to meet you too Kagami-kun, you can just call me Haruka." She held out her hand and Kagami took it "I lived in the U.S for part of my life as well, still go back a lot for work actually."

Bending down Haruka started shuffling through the box at her feet. Kagami felt an impending doom as she stood with several items in her hands.

**~KuroBasu~**

Looking at the scene before him Kuroko let a single laugh escape his lips. Kagami still stood at the bottom of the stairs. The blush was back on his face. A box lay opened by his feet and it's contents scattered on the floor. Haruka stood off to the side, talking with a phone pressed to her ear. She had an accomplished look on her face, giving Kuroko a wink and a wave as he descended the stairs and pulled on his shoes.

The air outside was cold and smelled like autumn. Kagami gave a hasty fare well, shutting the door behind the two of them. Neither spoke as they walked away from the house, crossing a small bridge that connected the residential area to downtown. Kuroko glanced over at his companion as they stopped at a streetlight on the edge of town. Red eyes caught his gaze and the bluenett laughed internally at the look on his friends face.

Black and orange-stripped earmuffs covered the tall male's ears, and matching gloves and scarf fit surprisingly well with what Kagami was already wearing.

"They were apparently your dad's old clothes" Kagami looked down at his orange and black covered hands, probably questioning their previous owner's sense of style. Kuroko tilted his head slightly. His mother was never one to give away family items.

As though reading his thoughts there was suddenly a grin pulling at the other's lips. "Guess your mom just realized you were never going to grow into them and figured they would go to waste other wise."

The grin only seemed to grow as he walked ahead onto the street as the light flashed green. Ignoring the good-natured kick to his shin in response to his teasing. He turned his fire red gaze down to Kuroko as the smaller teen fell back into place at his side.

The grin softened into a smile. Hands brushed for a brief moment before Kagami took the other's fingers in his grip. The hold tightened as he looked ahead, walking into the oncoming rush of people.

Perhaps there would have been stares. Whispers and giggles might have followed in their wake, but instead the usual hustle of the crowded street continued. Kuroko looked at the red head, and wondered what the people passing by thought about the boy walking alone down the street with a smile wide as the horizon stretching across his face.

Kuroko glanced down at his pale hands intertwined with tan ones, and wondered about the person who looked so intently at a boy invisible to the world.

**~KuroBasu~**

"Kagami-kun, what are we doing here?" Kuroko shot his companion a questioning look. Only to be startled by a sudden hand around his wrist, he felt himself exhale sharply as strong arms wrapped around him as he was pulled into the taller male's chest.

"Kagami-kun, what-" he was cut off when the door he had just previously been standing in front of slammed open. A woman wearing a long dark purple dress darted through hugging several books to her chest, eyes fixated on the phone in her hand.

Kuroko sighed mentally; people really should watch where they're going. Then again it really wouldn't make a difference to him either way.

"We probably shouldn't stand around out here, we'll be in people's way" Kagami spoke while slowly unwinding his arms from around Kuroko. "Who would've thought so many people went to the library on a Saturday."

"Most people come here to get school related information, but there's a lot of other interesting books inside too."

Kuroko felt cold for some reason, missing the warmth from the other's body heat. "Are you looking for a book Kagami-kun?"

Kagami had a blank look for a moment. "No, no I'm not looking for a book" he scratched his head for a moment as if thinking. "Truth is I need to pick something up from across the street, and if you wouldn't mind you could wait in the library while I go run and grab it."

"Then I will look for a book inside, please find me after you are finished. I will be on the top floor." Kuroko nodded and turned to open the door.

"I'll be like 20 minutes!" Kagami shouted over his back, flashing a bright smile before jogging off into the crowd.

Giving one last small wave, Kuroko entered the building. The ground floor of the library was full of the newest and popular releases, Kuroko made his way past the shiny metal and glass shelves walking directly to the stairs. The second floor was modern and renovated just like the first, large tables were scatter throughout providing ideal places for quite study. Groups of kids clustered around the computers lined up along the far wall, but the didn't notice Kuroko as he slipped by and began to clime yet another set of stairs.

Once on the third floor Kuroko breathed a sigh of relief. There were barely any people on this floor, only a few loitered among the heavy wooden selves skimming cover after cover or already flipping through a book in their hand. The room itself was large, made even grander by the high ceilings.

Sunlight streamed through the large windows on the roof. Kuroko walked deeper into the maze of shelves, the books here weren't new and recent. Rather, most dated back many years, they were things like Japanese literature on tradition and many interesting historical events.

It didn't take long for Kuroko to find something that interested him. A book of myths, it had a dark brown cover letters written in golden ink. The first myth was about a wealthy queen that had lost her only son in a terrible flood, she spent years searching for him. But when they finally came face-to-face once again the son had grown up to much, she did not recognize him. A prisoner was caught for trespassing on royal grounds, and the queen ordered an execution with out a second though.

The queen never found her lost son; she grew old but never bore another child. And as she lay dying in her royal chamber she asked he handmaiden. _'Why? Why didn't he come back to me? Why didn't he come home….'_ The handmaiden looked startled as she replied, _'but you're highness, don't you remember? He did come back._'

Kuroko snapped the book shut.

"What a morbid story,"

Japanese culture seemed to be full of them for some reason. It sort of made Kuroko wonder why he liked to read these kinds of books. With a sigh he pushed the book back into the shelf and moved to look for a new one.

He cast one last glance at the book of myths.

"What a tragic end."

**~KuroBasu~**

Kagami was out of breath by the time he arrived back at the library. His newly acquired item clutched firmly in his hand. The place was a lot farther than he originally though it was, checking his watch Kagami cursed when he realized it was already nearing 5:00; he was over 10 mins late.

Kuroko has said he'd be on the top floor. Quickly making his way inside Kagami wasted no time in climbing the two flights of stairs.

The top floor was silent, a few heads turned in his direction as he walked towards the shelves. He probably looked terribly out of place, with sweat still clinging to his skin from all the running. The thick carpet was soft underneath his feet as he peered down row after row of books hoping to catch a glimpse of blue weaving among them. He had half a mind to just shout the other's name and save himself the trouble of looking, but he didn't imagine that Kuroko would to pleased if he did that.

Turning down another row of shelves Kagami spotted what he was looking for.

Kuroko appeared to be deeply focused on the book in his hands. Fingers brushed lightly against the paper as he flipped another page.

Kagami took in a sharp breath.

The blue haired boy was stood in a pool of golden light that streamed down from the ceiling. The slightest of smiles tugged that his pale pink lips. It was beautiful, and Kagami almost felt regretful as he tilted the fair face away from the book and connected their lips.

It was a good thing Kuroko had picked such a secluded area to hang around. Although Kagami doubted he would have stopped even if they weren't behind so many shelves.

Wide blue eyes gazed back, urging the red head on as they slipped shut gently. Kagami deepened the kiss running his tongue along the other's bottom lip and slipping inside when he was granted permission. Without much thought he threaded his fingers through blue locks, using both arms as leverage to pull the other's smaller frame closer.

This time Kagami didn't let go as they broke for air. Instead, he held the others face an inch apart as Kuroko panted against his lips. He way he was holding him, Kuroko's arms were pressed to his sides, the book he hand been holding had dropped to the ground at some point.

When he finally caught his breath Kuroko looked up at the other but didn't make any attempt to break free.

"You're late Kagami-kun."

"Yah, sorry it took longer than I thought it would." Unhurriedly he let his arms fall back to his sides. They still stood close.

"Where did you go?" Kuroko question lightly, his cheeks were flushed with just the slightest hint of a blush and Kagami found it to be so terribly tempting.

Without replying Kagami reached into his pocket. The item inside jingled as he pulled it out.

Kuroko's eyes widened.

"I had them make another copy," he scratched his head with a light grin on his face "now we won't have to worry about knocking."

Kagami held the set of spare keys out to Kuroko.

They dangled on a silver keychain. Also attached was a glass star. The center of the star was tinted a light blue, the colour spreading like wisps of smoke out to the 5 points. A fine line wrapped around the top point from where the string connected it to the rest of the keychain. It formed a 'K' on the star's surface in silvery ink that stood out slightly from the glass. The whole thing sparkled and shined in the light.

Kuroko couldn't tear his eyes away. Carefully he reached out and took the item in his hands, holding it delicately between his fingers. The metal chain was cold from the outside air, but Kuroko could also feel slight warmth from where Kagami had previously held it.

The blue haired boy continued to stare at the object in his hands, unsure of how to express his gratitude. Communication had never been his strong point, but he felt that this was important. He needed the other to know what he thought; everything he felt.

"I'm glad you like it."

Kagami's voice was sincere and the grin on his face confused Kuroko.

"I haven't said anything yet Kagami-kun."

It only caused Kagami's grin to widen. "No, but you're smiling," he poked Kuroko's cheek with a finger. "You know, that's the first time I've seen it, such an expression on you."

Smiles were rare with Kuroko; but Kagami found himself the witness to them more and more as the days passed. None of them however, could compare to now. The smile on Kuroko's face as he held his present was beautiful and bright. It made Kagami's heart race, and brought a smile to his own face.

"You never were one to talk much so there's no need to say anything. Your expression this time was easy enough to read."

"I guess Kagami-kun can be smart sometimes."

There was a hint of laughter in Kuroko's voice as he stretched up, leading on the tips of his toes to connect his lips with the redhead's once more. It was amazing how Kagami had the ability to gather together all the scatter thoughts inside Kuroko's head. Even when Kuroko himself didn't know what to do, he could put together all the pieces.

"Is that all I get for a thank you?" Kagami teased, leering slightly as they broke apart once more.

Kuroko grinned.

"For now."

He let the answer hang in the air between them. Smirk still in place, Kuroko then proceeded to spin around nonchalantly and pick up the book that lay forgotten on the ground from where it had dropped during the exchange.

Kagami was slightly stunned at the answer; he'd expected a blank stare or maybe even a sharp jab in the ribs. But the small almost unnoticeable upturn in Kuroko's lips sent his heart racing, and several unnecessary images racing through his mind.

Not quite knowing what to say in returned Kagami tried to remember his previously assembled plan.

"S-so I ran past the theater on my way back here, there was a big line up, apparently that book everyone was talking about just came out as a movie." Kagami scratched his head sheepishly, "I say you reading the book a while back, so do you wanna go see it with me?"

It was amusing to Kuroko that even after everything he just did, Kagami still felt he needed to make a an excuse just to as him to go to the movies. There were some mysteries in life that always mystified Kuroko, and Kagami's mind seemed to be one of them.

The thump of a book landing heavily a few meters to their left startled them both. Some cursing followed it before a man dressed lightly in white came around from the other side of the shelves. Realizing there were people watching him the man muttered a quick apology before hurrying away.

Turning back to Kuroko, Kagami gave a shrug before gesturing towards the outside with a sweep of his arm.

"Lets go."

The theater was a good block and a half way from the library, and Kuroko wondered just how far the red head had run to obtain his present. By the time they were seated with drinks and snacks in front of the big screen it was nearing 6:00pm. The movie itself was good, Kuroko felt it really did the book justice and had excellent affects throughout.

Two hours later the duo stood outside of the theater doors, Kagami finishing off the last of the refill of an extra large bag of popcorn, while slurping down an equally large pop. Kuroko watched from the sidelines, fascinated by the rate at which the food was inhaled into a seemingly endless vortex the redhead called his stomach.

Darkness had already spread over the city. White clouds formed in front of their faces with every breath, the air was cold, causing shivers to course through Kuroko's thin frame.

"I didn't realize it was already dark out," Kagami was throwing out the empty food containers "guess we should head back, your mom's probably gonna get worried soon."

"My parents are at a meeting tonight, they won't be getting back until later, but your right my mom does have a tendency to worry a lot and will probably call me soon."

Another shiver raked through Kuroko's body, he was wearing a coat but it did little to protect him from the chill.

He saw Kagami moving from the corner of his eye.

For the second time that day Kuroko felt his hand being held in that warm embrace. Gentle, but still firm and commanding, Kagami began walking in the direction of the residential area where Kuroko lived.

It seemed like mere moments but the bridge leading back to the residential area loomed before them. Kuroko pulled out of Kagami's grasp and strolled over to onside of the small bridge, peering over the edge into the dark waters below.

"The currents actually pretty strong for such as small stream"

Kagami was standing beside him, also leaned against the sturdy rail of the bridge. But his eyes weren't on the waters below. Red eyes carefully traced the contours of his partners face, taking in the cold induced flush. He watched as the other exhaled, the air from his lungs turn white as it passed through those light pink lips. His own breaths were fast and shallow, increasing with every frantic heartbeat.

He was staring, standing there with his arms at his sides unable to look away even when blue eyes turned to give a questioning look.

Perhaps Kuroko already knew what the other wanted. Kagami had always been easy to read. Every emotion, want and desire written plainly on his face there for anyone to see.

It was the same look he had worn earlier in the library, when Kuroko had dropped the rather suggestive tease.

Whatever Kagami wanted to say went unspoken as the shrill beeping of a cellphone split through the silence. It wasn't Kuroko, like both seemed to expect.

Kagami reached into his pocket and pulled out the disruptive piece of technology with a poorly restrained huff of annoyance.

"Hello?"

The person on the other end was talking in rushed voices, and Kuroko watched slightly worried as a frown appeared on the redhead's face.

"Yah, I'm not that far away give me 20mins tops."

He hung up the phone with a click.

"What's wrong Kagami-kun?"

"That was my neighbor, apparently they bought a new piece of furniture and can't get it up the stairs."

"Then you should probably hurry back to help them." Kuroko's voice held a hint of worry. "It's cold outside and it would be bad if they had to wait outside for too long, I can get back home by myself."

A conflicted look crossed Kagami's face. "I told your mom that I'd walk you back if it got dark out."

"There's no need, my house isn't far from here," Kuroko put his hands on Kagami's back and gave him a little push in the direction of his home. "You can call me later if you want."

"Alright I'll check in as soon as I'm finished helping out."

Shooting Kuroko one last calculating look over his shoulder Kagami jogged off towards his apartment.

It felt colder to stand there alone. The air around him seemed to freeze and the first flake of snow startled Kuroko. It landed on his cheek before melting and sliding down the rest of this face.

The first snow of the year. Kuroko stood still as if fell quietly around him, and he wished that Kagami was here. Instinctively he reached into his pocket, feeling for the keychain he had been gifted with. What he felt there sent a wave of fire coursing through his body.

Panic. It wasn't there.

Kuroko spun around franticly searching the bridge illuminated by a dim streetlight, even though he knew there was no way it could be there. He had probably dropped it in the movie theater when they had sat down.

He wasted no time taking off back into the city. There was hesitation in his mind, a promise he had made his mother yelled at him to stop; but this was more important. He couldn't lose that keychain. That thought drove him on.

It seemed like hours before the theater finally came into view. Kuroko rushed through the doors completely out of breath. The place was dark; most of the lights were already shut off. A group of about 5 people were still loitered in front of some of the vending machines. Kuroko's attention was drawn from them as another person; seemingly a janitor exited one of the theater rooms locking it behind him, the one where he and Kagami had sat.

"Excuse me!"

Not surprisingly the man didn't actually notice someone was calling out to him until Kuroko was standing right in front of him. A startled jump before the man seemed to compose himself.

"M-may I help you?"

"Yes, it seems I've left something on my seat in the room you just locked when I was here earlier, could I just check if it's there?"

The man nodded once, turning back to the door and unlocking it. "Try to be quick this place is technically closed." He glanced over at the group still hanging around the entrance, "I'm gonna lock the front so just go out the back when you leave it'll be open for about another hour, hope you find what you're looking for."

"Thank you." Kuroko bowed showing his gratitude.

"Oh, and I'd stay away from that group over there, they're not exactly a good crowd to be around, head home right away."

With another nod Kuroko began his search. He and Kagami had sat near the back, but upon scanning the row, there was nothing. Fear mounted inside Kuroko's chest as he searched row by row the rest of the theater even though his instincts told him there was no way it could be there.

But then where could it be? Where could it possibly –?

It sat on the center seat in the first row. Lying there, placed perfectly as if waiting to be found. Kuroko scooped it up with his hands and held it close. Relief washed over him and he finally calmed his racing heart.

Glancing around the dimmed room, Kuroko decided he could ponder the questions racing around his mind after was home. Now that the adrenaline was gone from his veins he felt uneasy. There was definitely something wrong with this situation and the feeling only worsened when he reached the back door and saw that the group that had been previously in the theater was crowded in that narrow alley way.

"Did you find what you were looking for, sweetheart?" the man was medium in size and wore loose fitting jeans with a dark yellow sweater. Coal black eyes bore into Kuroko's blue ones, sneering at the tense posture.

"I'm sorry I should be going"

The grip around his wrist stopped him.

"I honestly didn't think you'd come back for it, must really be important."

One of the onlookers laughed aloud the sound jarring and harsh. It was the person that had dropped a book earlier in the library; he still wore the white but covered it with a black hoody.

It started to fall in place in Kuroko's mind. These people had probably sat behind them in the theater and snatched the keychain during the movie. It was the ideal, place to perform such an act.

"This was a lot easier than I thought it would be, now come on be good and I promise we'll be gentle." It was an obvious lie and the people around him snorted at the statement.

**~KuroBasu~**

Kagami let out an exhausted groan as he finally shut the door of his apartment. He honestly didn't know what his neighbors were thinking buying a massive 4 piece couch set and thinking they could get it into their home without some professional help.

He sat down in from of the TV and checked his clock; it was almost 11:00pm. Kuroko was would have gotten home ages ago, and had probably gone to bed by now. Kagami wasn't sure he should call and risk disturbing the other's rest.

He pulled out his red phone and flipped it open; finger hovering above the call button. A smile creped onto his face. It would be nice to hear the other's voice one more time; slurred and roughed by sleep. With that he pressed down on the call button, leaning back against this couch and closed his eyes.

There was no answer when the line was picked up. Heavy breathing and the sound of rushing wind.

There was no wind inside a house.

Kagami immediately sat up alarmed, fear slowly creeping into his limbs.

"Kuroko what's going on? Where are you?" He could hear footsteps now, frantic, and too many to be coming from only one person. "Kuroko!" There was yelling now in the background and closing in.

Kagami was already back out the door and slamming it shut behind him. He continued to shout the other's name into the phone.

"Kagami-kun!" the voice that came through the earpiece was desperate and scared.

The expression was startlingly vivid as it flashed across Kagami's mind. Panicked wide eyes full of fear. He had never seen Kuroko wear such and expression but his voice produced an accurate image.

Before he had time to respond there was the sound of flesh hitting flesh. The succeeding gasp of pain was Kuroko's. There were words being shouted but Kagami couldn't tell what they were saying. The blood pounding in his ears dulled it all out; he could only hear the pained whimpers and harsh breathing that belonged to Kuroko.

He had to find him. But he could be anywhere. Should he call the police? They would never make it in time. Standing here sure as hell wouldn't do any good, he need to move, he needed-"

Crack –

The sound made Kagami's heart stop. Every muscle in his body froze; dread tore through him.

A sharp intake of breath. A splash, and the sound of rushing water.

Water

Kagami took off far faster than he though possible in any situation other than basketball. His feet took him to the bridge he had last seen Kuroko on.

It was devoid of life. Only a gaping hole in the railing near the right of the bridge falling away into the water below.

**~KuroBasu~**

The water was cold. Like pins and needles, stabbing into every part of his body. Setting his nerve ending's alight and shrinking away from the sensation as he was completely submerged in the stream's icy waters. Kuroko tried to move his arms and reach towards the surface, but the muscles were unresponsive and the pain in his side made him want to curl in on himself.

He could feel his vision darkening around the edges, the pale moonlight fading, as he was swept deeper and farther downstream. Eyes slipped shut as the last ounce of energy was depleted.

The sound of bells. A faint jingling and the feel of and arm looping around his chest.

Kuroko landed heavily on the grassy banks on one side of the stream. Gasping for breath Kuroko caught a glimpse of his savior's retreating back. Taller than anyone he had every encountered, black hair formed several long spikes at the top of his head, a singled golden bell attached to the end of each spike.

There wasn't enough air in his lungs to speak, and he could feel the water on his skin begin to freeze. Weakly he rolled over and tried to stand, reaching a hand into his pocket and almost collapsing again in relief when he felt the keychain still there and in one piece.

The stranger was gone.

His earlier pursuers didn't seem to have followed him down the river, so the loud footsteps and frantic calling of his name could only have been one person.

Kagami was beside him moments later. Warm arms wrapped around him and pulled him close.

"Kuroko, who did this?"

Kuroko shook his head. There was a moment of silence where they just sat there. Snow falling lightly around them, innocent and pure white. Utterly undisturbed by everything that had happened.

It was Kagami that moved first. "God, you're freezing, I'm calling an ambulance right now you need to-"

"No!" Blue eyes looked pleadingly back. "Don't call the police please, I don't want… I just want to go home." There was something unexplainable in those eyes. Something that was normally hidden away at all times. Now seeping through onto the other's expression.

There was something he wasn't telling him.

But Kagami didn't argue, and he didn't press farther. He simply shoved his phone back into his pocket and gathered his partner up in his arms lifting him easily off the ground. Kuroko was so light; it was as if he wasn't there. Even as he held him in his arms; Kagami noticed for the first time it felt empty. As if with every step towards home he took, something else slipped through his fingers.

And another piece fell away.

**~KuroBasu~**

They didn't bother with the lights. Kagami headed straight for the bathroom, setting the boy in his arms down on the counter as he started filling the tub with warm, but not hot water. He noted that Kuroko had begun shivering; that was a good sign, it meant that body was trying to warm itself up.

Light was streaming in through the small window located on the right side of the bathroom. It bathed the room in a silvery glow. Tainting it with yellow and artificial light seemed wrong, so neither reached for the switch. And neither spoke, the silence only broken by the sound of water pooling in the tub.

Once Kagami deemed the tub to be full the water was switched off and he helped Kuroko stand.

"I'll leave some clothes outside, you can change into once you're done. Just yell if you need me."

Kuroko nodded, a small smile on his face.

The moment Kagami pulled the bathroom door closed behind him, his phone went off. It was an unknown number but Kagami could guess who it was.

"Haruka-san."

"Kagami," she paused, "is Tetsuya with you?"

"Yah, he's in the bath right now… there was a bit of an incident, I can have him call you back."

He could hear the other let out a sigh of relief. "No, it's fine. I tried calling his cell phone but it didn't go through, but it's fine if he's with you." There was another pause, "this was a mistake on my part. Can I trouble you to let Kuroko stay the night? This meeting is taking a lot longer than anticipated."

She sounded weary, older, and more tired then she had that morning.

"It's no trouble… ma'am," he stumbled awkwardly on the last work, adding it on as an after thought.

"I'll pick him up in the morning tomorrow then," she chuckled lightly "thank you Taiga-kun" and the line went dead.

Kagami hung up on his end as well, marveling over the conversation. The creaking of the bathroom door and a soft voice calling his name brought his attention back to the world around him.

"Kagami-kun? Do you have the clothes I could borrow?" Kuroko had poked his head out of the bathroom.

"R-right sorry."

Rushing into his room Kagami grabbed the first clean clothes he came across and made his way back. The blue haired boy watched him as he handed the pile of too big clothes over.

"Was that my mom just now?"

Kagami blinked, "yah, she just wanted to make sure you were ok. You're phone's probably broken from being in the water; apparently she'll be picking you up in the morning."

With a nod Kuroko disappeared into the bathroom once more.

The couch was a welcomed sensation; Kagami closed his eyes as he sunk into the soft material. Exhaustion, he felt so physically drained, but the buzz of energy was still there. From the running, the panic, the relief… the adrenaline refused to leave his body.

When he opened his eyes Kuroko was standing in front of him. White shirt hanging off one shoulder revealing the tempting skin beneath just like that first time. The shirt hung to about mid thigh.

Idiot, he had only gotten him a shirt.

Adrenaline was still cruising through his veins, but now it was fueled by something else entirely.

Now Kagami's pulse sped up with every step Kuroko took towards him.

He sat in the center of the couch, leaning against the backrest, trying to breath normally. The cushions dipped as Kuroko added his weight to it. His skin was still wet from the bath. Kagami could almost feel the moisture on the other's thighs through the material of his pants as they straddled him.

"Thank you."

The words were whispered against his lips. Kuroko held his partner's gaze.

His eyes seemed to glow in the darkness. An eerie light Kagami found he couldn't tear away from. It was like a distant star, far away, but shone so much brighter than the sun.

"Thank you for the keychain, thank you for today… thank you for finding me."

He leaned down and closed those last few inches between their lips. When they broke apart Kagami reached up winding an arm around narrow hips, effectively holding him in place.

"Is that all I get for a thank you?"

Kuroko caught his gaze again, calm and calculating. It made the head in Kagami's stomach burn that much brighter.

He wanted to know what was hidden behind those icy blue eyes. He wanted to see what other expressions that lovely face could be twisted into. He wanted to hear beyond that monotone voice.

With on swift movement flipped them over. Kuroko landed on his back, a gasp escaping his lips. Kagami hovered above, bending lower and brushed his lips over the exposed collarbone. He could feel hands fisting his hair, tugging him back up for a kiss. He complied pressing down hard enough to bruise.

He was always so collected, so polite, so composed, and Kagami wanted to shatter that tranquility.

To see that bright blue gaze clouded over, staring back through half lidded eyes. The beginnings of a bruise darkened on pale lips. Harsh breathing filled his ears. Kagami took it all in. This was what he wanted.

And he wanted more….


End file.
